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Article
Publication date: 2 February 2023

Alessandro Zardini, Lamin B. Ceesay, Cecilia Rossignoli and Raj Mahto

To further extend the understanding of the aggregating functions of an entrepreneurial business network, this paper attempts to explore the antecedents enabling the organisation…

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Abstract

Purpose

To further extend the understanding of the aggregating functions of an entrepreneurial business network, this paper attempts to explore the antecedents enabling the organisation of diverse entrepreneurs to engage in a collaborative inter-firm business network project. This paper also elucidates the development of the relational capabilities and performance of entrepreneurial business networks.

Design/methodology/approach

An explorative, longitudinal case study design is employed to analyse an Italian agricultural business network, which comprised a group of local small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Using the network as the focus of analysis, the case study draws insights from key informants comprising the network management team and the entrepreneurs who make up the membership of the business network.

Findings

The results of the study provide critical factors for successful organisation of inter-firm engagement. Although these factors are not mutually exclusive, the results show that organising for inter-firm engagement in an entrepreneurial business network context positively influenced the network relational performance and entrepreneurs' innovation capabilities.

Originality/value

The paper extends current understanding of inter-organisational engagement and illuminates the antecedents enabling the development of network relational dynamics capabilities. The empirical results provide unusual insights into the aggregating roles of an entrepreneurial business network, giving practitioners practical insights into managing a successful inter-organisational collaborative project. Using the relevant theoretical frameworks, the study empirically tests the organisation solutions relevant to literature on inter-firm engagement in a business network context and addresses the organisation solutions' interrelationship and linkages to entrepreneurial network relational performance in terms of knowledge practice, information and resources sharing and innovation.

Details

International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, vol. 29 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2554

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Article
Publication date: 26 May 2020

Sascha Kraus, Thomas Clauss, Matthias Breier, Johanna Gast, Alessandro Zardini and Victor Tiberius

Within a very short period of time, the worldwide pandemic triggered by the novel coronavirus has not only claimed numerous lives but also caused severe limitations to daily…

28344

Abstract

Purpose

Within a very short period of time, the worldwide pandemic triggered by the novel coronavirus has not only claimed numerous lives but also caused severe limitations to daily private as well as business life. Just about every company has been affected in one way or another. This first empirical study on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on family firms allows initial conclusions to be drawn about family firm crisis management.

Design/methodology/approach

Exploratory qualitative research design based on 27 semi-structured interviews with key informants of family firms of all sizes in five Western European countries that are in different stages of the crisis.

Findings

The COVID-19 crisis represents a new type and quality of challenge for companies. These companies are applying measures that can be assigned to three different strategies to adapt to the crisis in the short term and emerge from it stronger in the long run. Our findings show how companies in all industries and of all sizes adapt their business models to changing environmental conditions within a short period of time. Finally, the findings also show that the crisis is bringing about a significant yet unintended cultural change. On the one hand, a stronger solidarity and cohesion within the company was observed, while on the other hand, the crisis has led to a tentative digitalization.

Originality/value

To the knowledge of the authors, this is the first empirical study in the management realm on the impacts of COVID-19 on (family) firms. It provides cross-national evidence of family firms' current reactions to the crisis.

Details

International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, vol. 26 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2554

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Article
Publication date: 10 December 2020

Sabrina Bonomi, Francesca Ricciardi, Cecilia Rossignoli and Alessandro Zardini

This study investigates (1) the processes through which social enterprises develop resilient organizational logics and (2) the key resilience factors in the organizational logics…

708

Abstract

Purpose

This study investigates (1) the processes through which social enterprises develop resilient organizational logics and (2) the key resilience factors in the organizational logics of successful social enterprises. The organizational logic is conceptualized here as the dynamic system of roles, rules and social expectations that result from the organization's business model, impact model and organizational form.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopts an inductive approach to identify emerging resilience factors and processes in an exemplary case of social entrepreneurship (a work integration venture). The longitudinal data collection on this case took place from 2011 to 2016, based on approximately 440 h of participant observation and 10 semi-structured interviews.

Findings

The inductive analysis suggests that social enterprises develop resilient organizational logics through multi-level recursive processes of bridging institutional work. These processes enable the development of an organizational logic that is internally robust while linking distant practices, needs and expectations. The authors conceptualize these characteristics into a novel construct, the organizational logic's bridging power, which is operationalizable through two dimensions (hybridity-based and cocreation-based bridging power) and five sub-dimensions.

Research limitations/implications

Like in all inductive studies, further research is needed to validate the proposed model. The new proposed construct “organizational logic's bridging power” is, interestingly, a meta-theoretical concept encouraging cross-fertilization between the literature on institutional logics and that on value cocreation.

Originality/value

The process development model proposed by this study highlights the importance of network-level institutional work for developing cocreation-based resilience. Furthermore, this study shows how institutional theories could be complemented with other bodies of knowledge in order to understand social enterprise resilience.

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Article
Publication date: 17 February 2021

Giulio Caldarelli, Alessandro Zardini and Cecilia Rossignoli

This paper aims to examine and overcome the barriers to the widespread adoption of blockchain technology, introducing a novel concept of sustainability in the fashion supply chain.

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine and overcome the barriers to the widespread adoption of blockchain technology, introducing a novel concept of sustainability in the fashion supply chain.

Design/methodology/approach

This work is an exploratory study of a well-known fashion company operating in the Veneto region (Italy). Data extracted from interviews and focus groups are coded using the (CAQDAS) software AQUAD. The outcome is then organized according to an adapted TOE view.

Findings

This exploration study's findings support the idea that the blockchain solution could be a valuable add-on in sustainable supply chains. However, a high understanding of technology and extensive communication with clients is required for successful integration.

Research limitations/implications

Being the outcome of qualitative analysis, the findings require further investigation to be inferable at a broader scale. As the project is still incomplete, some managerial choices are always subject to change.

Practical implications

Focused on a practitioner approach, this paper should guide managers in the process of successfully implementing blockchain technology. Arguably, similar companies may opt for similar choices.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first paper to contextualize and address the blockchain adoption barriers in the fashion supply chain. Furthermore, it offers an overview of how blockchain affects sustainable production.

Details

Journal of Organizational Change Management, vol. 34 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0953-4814

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Article
Publication date: 12 October 2015

Alessandro Zardini, Francesca Ricciardi and Cecilia Rossignoli

The purpose of this paper is to shed light on how the relational capital of the information technology (IT) department creates value in organizations. In addition, the paper…

988

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to shed light on how the relational capital of the information technology (IT) department creates value in organizations. In addition, the paper presents a multi-dimensional scale to measure and manage relational capital in the IT department.

Design/methodology/approach

In the first, explorative phase of the study, interviews and focus groups were conducted in order to develop a new measurement scale, which was subsequently tested through a survey questionnaire (212 respondents).

Findings

This research suggests that the relational capital of the IT department is a very important resource for the creation of strategic value. The statistical analysis conducted for this study confirmed the validity and reliability of the novel scale developed to measure this resource. Finally, thanks to factor analysis, five dimensions for the scale were identified.

Research limitations/implications

Data were collected in northern Italy only. Further studies are advisable to confirm the validity of the constructs and scale.

Practical implications

The questionnaire presented in this study can be used to monitor the effectiveness of the interactions between the IT department and the other key actors involved in IT-enabled innovation. The adoption of this scale and its possible adaptation to specific, evolving business contexts may enhance the practitioner’s understanding of the role of relational capital in the value creation process.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to the “third stage” of intellectual capital research by concentrating on an intra-organizational level of analysis, which has been overlooked in the literature to date.

Details

Journal of Intellectual Capital, vol. 16 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1469-1930

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Article
Publication date: 28 May 2021

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.

884

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.

Design/methodology/approach

This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.

Findings

Sustainable supply chains in the fashion industry are under pressure to become more resilient and ubiquitous. Blockchain technology may be the key to implementing transparency on a global scale.

Originality/value

The briefing saves busy executives, strategists and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Details

Strategic Direction, vol. 37 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0258-0543

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Article
Publication date: 29 May 2023

Alessandro Creazza, Claudia Colicchia and Pietro Evangelista

The organization of services can affect the adoption of sustainable practices within the relationship between a buyer (e.g. a shipper) and a supplier (e.g. a logistics service…

775

Abstract

Purpose

The organization of services can affect the adoption of sustainable practices within the relationship between a buyer (e.g. a shipper) and a supplier (e.g. a logistics service provider–LSP). The purpose of this paper is to analyse, within this relationship, the mechanisms affecting collaboration between shippers and LSPs towards adopting green logistics practices to reduce the negative environmental effects of logistics processes. The authors take the perspective of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which represent – although less investigated than large enterprises – a relevant field of investigation given their impact on the environmental sustainability of logistics processes.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted a multiple case-study investigation on a set of dyads involving shippers and LSPs. The authors explored the antecedents shaping the approach to sustainability in logistics and, adopting the absorptive capacity (AC) theory, the learning and knowledge transfer processes leading to the adoption of green practices.

Findings

Collaboration between shippers and LSPs for better sustainability in logistics seems not to work when relationships are limited to simple annual (or pluriannual) contracts, and when shippers do not show ambition to improve the level of sustainability of their logistics processes (regardless of whether they show an interest in general sustainability matters). On the other hand, successful cases show higher commitment in the dyadic relationship with respect to improving logistics sustainability, good levels of communication and a more structured process of knowledge sharing, enabled by IT integration, shared performance monitoring, and creation of inter-organizational teams.

Originality/value

While most of the existing research focuses on the perspective of shippers or LSPs, this work is original since it explores collaborative mechanisms within a buyer-supplier relationship simultaneously taking the perspective of both parties, according to the lens of the AC. It identifies directions for improving collaboration within the shipper-LSP relationship in the context of SMEs to foster the adoption of collaborative green logistics practices to impact sustainability positively.

Details

The International Journal of Logistics Management, vol. 35 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-4093

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Article
Publication date: 17 April 2023

Alessandro Bressan, Abel Duarte Alonso, Oanh Thi Kim Vu and Daniel Borer

The purpose of this study is to examine factors contributing to family firms’ survival in the ongoing COVID-19 crisis; in this endeavour, the study espouses the underpinnings of…

257

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine factors contributing to family firms’ survival in the ongoing COVID-19 crisis; in this endeavour, the study espouses the underpinnings of social exchange theory and entrepreneurial resilience.

Design/methodology/approach

The views of 128 Italian family micro and small-sized firm owners/managers operating in different industries were gathered through an online questionnaire.

Findings

The analysis uncovers 12 fundamental factors contributing to firms’ survival; these are encapsulated in three dimensions and presented in two theoretical frameworks. The “beneficiary” dimension stresses the support from various internal and external stakeholders, while the “benefactor” dimension illustrates the commitment to extend the family tradition and be responsive to stakeholders. Finally, the “immersion/embeddedness” dimension denotes firms’ entrepreneurial behaviour, agility, decision-making and drive.

Originality/value

Firstly, and from a practitioner perspective, this study addresses recognised knowledge and research gaps in contemporary family business research, including how family firms are confronting the current unprecedented crisis. This response to current extant gaps provides first-hand empirical findings that could be primarily considered by industry stakeholders. Secondly, and from a theoretical angle, the aforementioned dimensions revealed through the analysis, coupled with the development of a theoretical framework, contribute to conceptual rigour and, therefore, a deeper understanding of family firms’ journey through an unprecedented event.

Details

Management Research Review, vol. 46 no. 11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-8269

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Article
Publication date: 1 February 2022

David Wai Lun Ng, Abel Duarte Alonso, Alessandro Bressan and Oanh Thi Kim Vu

The purpose of this study is to examine the significance of knowledge management as a tool for firms to adapt to an ongoing unprecedented crisis. Moreover, in considering the…

612

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the significance of knowledge management as a tool for firms to adapt to an ongoing unprecedented crisis. Moreover, in considering the knowledge-based view of the firm, the study will ascertain the impacts, lessons learnt and how firms envisage their future under the current unpredictable regime from the viewpoints of firm owners/managers.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative data collection approach was selected, with face-to-face and online interviews undertaken with owners/managers of 33 firms operating in Singapore.

Findings

The data analysis reveals as many as eight dimensions pertaining to impacts, lessons learnt and the envisioned future of the firms. The relevance of knowledge management emerged, for instance, in supporting firms and staff to overcome initial challenges after the crisis became apparent. Knowledge management was also an exemplar of lessons learnt, through new knowledge development, strengthening links with consumers, through operational skilfulness and awareness, as well as in explaining how firms envision their future. These findings also underscore key tenets of the knowledge-based view of the firm.

Originality/value

Conceptually, the proposed dimensions stemming from the three examined research questions, together with the propositions and theoretical framework, contribute to a deeper understanding of the links between knowledge management and how firms confront a severe crisis. Empirically, the findings’ highlighted associations with knowledge management elements to illuminate how firms address the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis, as well as the lessons learnt and the envisioned future of firms operating under severe crisis conditions.

Details

Journal of Knowledge Management, vol. 26 no. 10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1367-3270

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Article
Publication date: 4 July 2022

Alessandro Bressan, Abel Duarte Alonso, Oanh Thi Kim Vu and Seamus O'Brien

The purpose of this study is to contribute to the understanding of how micro and small firm owners/managers cope with an extreme event, as this has implications on how firms make…

311

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to contribute to the understanding of how micro and small firm owners/managers cope with an extreme event, as this has implications on how firms make decisions. The study considers self-efficacy and stakeholder theory as tools to gain more in-depth knowledge.

Design/methodology/approach

The perspectives of owners/managers of 308 micro and small firms operating in the food, wine and hospitality industries in Italy, one of the most affected nations, were drawn through an online questionnaire.

Findings

The importance of determination, passion, family support and a sense of responsibility towards internal and external stakeholders emerged as fundamental factors helping firms confront the crisis. Five theoretical dimensions that help explain how firm owners/managers make decisions to safeguard their firms during the COVID-19 crisis are identified. Three of these, “motivational”, “stepping up” and “firm-based”, are directly associated with tenets of self-efficacy theory, and two, “human-moral” and “entity-based”, with stakeholder theory. Further complementing this second contribution, a theoretical framework underlining conceptual and practical implications is proposed.

Originality/value

The study delves into the challenges and survival of a key group of firms facing an extreme crisis. The identified dimensions provide useful conceptual depth and practical insights that, together, form part of a proposed framework. For instance, the “human-moral” dimension reflects upon aspects that have wider implications, notably, for firms' employees and the wider society.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 125 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

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